spikes belonged to aliens.”
“And I said that those spikes could belong to angels,” I pointed out. “Just to remind you, I was right.”
He snorted. “I’ve been thinking about the spikes. They’d be deadly against any being with angel blood. Between your grace and them, we’d be better prepared.”
“Good idea.”
“Of course it was a good idea. It was mine,” he replied, and I rolled my eyes as a warm breeze curled around the bare nape of my neck. “By the way, I forgot to tell you I was not remotely successful in convincing Stacey to not go back to the school.”
I waited for a surge of jealousy, but there was barely a smidgen of the ugly emotion. Since that was a massive improvement, I decided not to read myself the riot act. “She might be safe. Sam didn’t make it sound like she was in immediate danger.”
“Yeah.”
Hopping off the ledge, nearly laughing at the ripple of relief that came through the bond, I walked to Zayne’s other side.
I almost lost an eye almost walking into his wing.
Luckily, he sensed how close I was and lifted it before I made contact. “You’re worried about her.”
“I am,” he admitted, and as close as I was now, I could make out his profile in the moonlight. “She’s been through enough.”
“She has,” I agreed. “Hopefully once we get into the school, we’ll be able to assess the situation. There’s got to be a way to get the spirits and ghosts out of there.”
Zayne stared at the street below, and I thought that if anyone could see him, they’d think a stone gargoyle had been installed. “I know you want to help them.”
I stiffened. “I will.”
“But you can’t help them cross over with those wards in place, Trin.”
Anger ticked away at my otherwise pleasant mood. “Well, you can’t exorcise them with the wards there, either, so we can compromise. Get the wards down, and I can move on the ghosts who need to go and the spirits who were trapped. I can take care of the Shadow People on Saturday night, and I’m betting, once I get rid of them, the ghosts and spirits might calm down.”
He nodded. “I was thinking about some of the books my father used to keep in the library. There’s a huge old book about angels. Probably be good to head over there tonight and grab it. Gideon might have already checked it, but...”
“But it wouldn’t hurt,” I agreed.
“Right. And I also think there’s another avenue we can take.”
“Like—” I jerked as an icy shiver slipped over the nape of my neck and settled between my shoulder blades as if a hand was pressed into my skin. “He’s here.”
Zayne came down from the ledge in one fluid motion. “Where?”
“Nearby. We need to draw him out.” I kept my voice low as I turned to Zayne. In the shadows, his gray skin blended in, but his pale gaze stood out in stark relief. A plan quickly formed. “We need to split up.”
“Yeah, already don’t like this idea,” Zayne growled.
“Neither do I.” I placed a hand on his chest. The heat of his skin was warm against my palm. “But he didn’t show himself last time until we were separated, and we need to get him to talk. I’ll go to the next roof. You go elsewhere, hide until he shows.”
“Trin—”
“I can take care of myself, and this time I won’t let him get the upper hand,” I promised. “You know I got this.”
His wings twitched with irritation but he said, “I know.”
I found his gaze and then stretched up, placing my other hand on the hard surface of his jaw. Three simple words rolled to my tongue but couldn’t break free. I did what I knew I could. Guiding his head toward mine, I kissed him softly, quickly, and then settled back onto my feet. I took a step and turned.
Zayne caught my arm, hauling me back to his chest. A gasp of surprise left me, quickly swallowed by the press of his mouth on mine. The touch of his tongue and the almost forbidden sensation of the tips of his fangs against my lips nearly turned my muscles to liquid. I was lifted up until only the toes of my boots touched the roof as he kissed me like a man coming out of a deep slumber, and there wasn’t a part of me that didn’t feel it.
This kind of kiss was definitely more.
When he lifted his mouth from mine, I